The Hindu Business Line : When `yes' could mean `no'

"In direct cultures (such as the US or the UK), a silence could mean an agreement with an opinion but in indirect cultures such as the Philippines or India, it could mean a disagreement."

Bangalore , July 28

If one of your employees said `Will try', how would you interpret it? Depends on whether the employee is American or Indian. A study on cross-cultural communication reveals that this response from an American or a British employee would mean `difficult but possible,' but from an Indian or a Chinese, it would be `a description of a future activity that will be undertaken with no implied action.'

Project hiccups

A study by Accenture found that colloquialism, resulting in miscommunication can cause hiccups in project deliverables in the offshoring business model. In fact, when companies implemented cross-cultural communication training programmes for its employees, it resulted in 26 per cent increase in productivity.

"And mind you, here we are not referring to English language or accent training, but cross-cultural communication as it applies at a project level," says Mr Kris Wadia, Partner Global Delivery Network, Accenture.

The study surveyed 200 American business executives whose companies have outsourced business processes or functions from various locations across the globe, including India. Mr Wadia says many a time, even simple responses such as a `Yes' or a silence could be misinterpreted by employees hailing from different cultures. "In direct cultures (such as the US or the UK), a silence could mean an agreement with an opinion but in indirect cultures such as the Philippines or India, it could mean a disagreement."

In his view, having overcome physical obstacles to outsourcing such as infrastructure, companies ought to appreciate the significance and value of cross-cultural communication training, as this is one of the contributing factors for problems between onshore and offshore workers.

Accenture is, in fact, already working with several of its clients across various sectors and offering training programmes for their employees. "Apart from long-term savings of time and money, this training has also resulted in better employee morale and reduced attrition rates for the company," he says.